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U.S. Secretary of Energy Ernest Moniz traveled to Beijing from July 8 to 11 to participate in the sixth U.S.-China Strategic and Economic Dialogue. The S&ED, which is chaired on the U.S. side by the Secretaries of State and Treasury, is the pre-eminent channel for government-to-government discussion between the two nations on issues relating to global, regional, and national security and economic issues.

In addition to participating in the S&ED, which included meetings with Chinese President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Keqiang, Secretary Moniz met with several counterparts in the Chinese government, as well as U.S. and Chinese companies, researchers, and non-governmental organizations. Moniz focused on opportunities to expand and deepen U.S.-China collaborations on clean energy and climate change.

"Increased cooperation between the United States and China is imperative to solve the enormous energy and climate challenges we face," Moniz said. "This week, the message has been consistent in every meeting and extremely encouraging: a shared desire for our two countries to work closely together to combat climate change, and develop and deploy clean energy."

On Thursday, Secretary Moniz signed two agreements with the Chinese that will enhance signficant new cooperation on energy issues. Moniz and Administrator Wu Xinxiong of China’s National Energy Administration signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) for cooperation on strategic petroleum reserves. This MOU enables the DOE’s Office of Petroleum Reserves and NEA’s National Oil Reserve Office to share information on technical, management, and policy issues related to oil stockpiles. DOE and NEA will conduct annual technical meetings to be held alternately in the United States and the People’s Republic of China. These activities will allow the two countries to understand each other’s systems and decision-making, which will facilitate effective response to disruptions in the global petroleum supply.

Secretary Moniz signed a separate MOU, for cooperation on electric vehicles and industrial energy efficiency, with Minister Miao Wei of the Chinese Ministry of Industry and Information Technology. Under this framework, the two sides will conduct cooperation in the fields of electric vehicles and related technologies, as well as energy efficiency improvement for end use products. Secretary Moniz and Minister Miao agreed on the importance of expanding joint work to promote efficient industrial use of energy and inter-operability of electric vehicles.

Moniz also met with the China Atomic Energy Authority Chairman Xu to discuss collaborations on nuclear power and on high-priority collaborations on nuclear security, including joint efforts to reduce use of highly-enriched uranium in research reactors around the globe.

Secretary Moniz wrapped up his visit with a productive meeting with Chinese Minister of Science and Technology Wan Gang, reviewing research progress and considering expansion of the U.S.-China Clean Energy Research Center (CERC). CERC, launched by President Obama and former Chinese President Hu Jintao in 2009, serves as a framework for joint research in key areas, including energy-efficient buildings, low-carbon coal technologies, and electric vehicles.